Will Juve win be the kickstart to Udinese's season?

Udinese 2 Juventus 1 ... that's right! Udinese have finally won a game. In a shock victory for Udinese, who have not beaten Juventus in the Stadio Friuli since 1995 and had just three draws from their last 10 Serie A games.

This was their first win since the 29th of October, when they beat Catania 2-0. Could it be the Bianconeri have finally turned a corner? Pasquale Marino's side have persevered through a very dramatic and dismal period, also recently flirting with the prospect of becoming embroiled in a relegation battle.
So, what of the Zebrette, can they move forward from this and mount a Roma-esque surge up the league and present a case for Champions League qualification. Make no mistake, Udinese deserved their win over Juventus and outplayed them for the full 90 minutes, with goals coming from Fabio Quagliarella and the magnificent Antonio Di Natale, Juventus were outclassed from the off. Juve manager Claudio Ranieri was humble in defeat and commended Udinese on their performance, "they proved impeccable both in defence and on the counter-attack," he declared.

The confidence of the side was at an all time low, humiliated by Reggina and Atalanta, throwing away a 3-0 lead against Lazio, destroyed 5-1 by Beckham's AC Milan. It looked as if nothing could stop the slide of the Bianconeri, who, after 8 games were sitting pretty at the summit of Serie A and playing the kind of football Arsenal would covet. A Scudetto challenge was mooted, or more realistically a UEFA cup place. Maybe this pressure penetrated the player's minds, unsettling a team of massive potential, culminating in the mediocre run of results.

Pasquale Marino, to his credit, has kept the faith with the players available and his loyalty has finally been repaid. During the 3-month barren period, Marino was coming under increasing fear of the sack and even received the dreaded ‘vote of confidence' from President Gianpaolo Pozzo. In spite of that, he has remained, for the time being at least. That in itself is a mean feat in Italy, citing a recent example: Bepe Pillion of Reggina being axed after 5 weeks! Taking that into account, praise must go to the Udinese hierarchy for not succumbing to media pressure and realising they have a very talented tactician on their hands.

After constant criticism, tactical tweaks and a revamp of the training structure, the relief in Udine must be palpable. Even so, I ask you, will the Bianconeri build on this momentous victory or will it be April before we see another Udinese victory?